(The following text is a part of an article
with the same title, which, in its full Rusyn version, can
be found in the same column of our website.)

The folklore group ŠARIŠ, which has
been active for eleven years at the Primary Music School
of Mikuláš Moyzes in Prešov, does not have to be
specially introduced to fans of folklore, as since its
establishment, it has gone on a journey of sharply
increasing popularity.... Gradually, it has become famous
not only on the east of Slovakia, but also reached past the
borders of Slovakia, and even the borders of Europe. Last
year, the group managed to realise a long planned tour to
Japan and this year, the group performed in the United
States of America, from where it returned just several weeks
ago. This is why we met the group´s leader Jozef PIROH,
and talented dancer and singer Lukáš GARBERA, a
student of a secondary comprehensive school in Prešov, who,
among his fellow-nationals, successfully presented the Rusyn
and Slovak folk lore “across the water “.

Just like in other places,
Šariš, the folklore group from Prešov with its soloist Lukáš
Garbera have successfully performed in the L. Lawrence
Convetion Centre. Jozef Piroh (from the left), the leader of
the group with his protege L. Garbera, who, at the 50th
year of the Folklore Festival of National Minorities in
Pittsburgh got the award (they are holding in their hands)
for their nice presentation of Rusyn folklore from Slovakia.

Lukáš remembers: „We
were invited to America on the basis of a long-term contact
with the group “SLAVJANE“, which is active at the
Carpatho-Rusyn Association in Pittsburgh and which has
already visited Slovakia several times. They were last here
a year ago, when, with their leader Dean Polok, over 80
members of the group with their relatives came to Slovakia,
as they regularly do to look for the places their ancestors
come from... Our visit was motivated by two significant
jubilees. One of them was the 50th year of the
Folklore Festival of National Minorities in Pittsburgh, to
which we had been invited to represent the Rusyn minority.
The other, a similarly significant jubilee, was the 30th
anniversary of the folklore group “Slavjane“, which we had
started our friendship with. In the USA, we had 15
performances, 7 of which took place directly at the
Pittsburgh festival…, in the town of about a hundred
thousand inhabitants, whose ancestors have Rusyn roots...
Our further performances took place in the towns of Mercer,
Erie, Johnstown, Jangstown and Cleveland“.

J. Piroh, the group’s leader, has emphasized:
„We were more than happy with our
stay in the USA, that is why we would like, also in this
way, to thank everybody, especially Dean Polok and his
father Jacek Polok, the main organisers of our tour to the
USA, whose roots are in Slovakia, in Rokytov, (located in
the Humenne region) and whose mother´s roots are in the
village of Šumiac (which was also Rusyn in the past), as
well as the families we stayed with and where we felt really
great. Our contact has progressed to familiarity, we have
got to know each other as people. When we were leaving, at
the airport, the eyes of many a man welled up and we
promised that it was not the last time we saw each other...“

Successful folklore ensemble SARIS Milk Agro of the
Elementary School of Art of M. Moyzes in Prešov.

Photo from the author’s
archive

The ŠARIŠ Milk Agro Children Folklore
Ensemble residing at Primary Art School of M. Moyzes in
Prešov celebrated the 10th anniversary of its establishment.
The Ensemble has already performed in more than 600
performances at home as well as abroad. The Ensemble
regularly takes part in events organized by the city of
Prešov, Primary Art School of M. Moyzes, Rusyn Renaissance
in Slovakia and other cultural organizations. The Ensemble
participates in district, regional, and Slovak-wide
competitions and exhibitions. Out of the events held at
homeland country, the Festival in Východná, Krivany, Humenné,
Medzilaborce, Raslavice etc. are of great importance. Up to
present it has represented the Šariš folklore in Ukraine,
Bulgaria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Serbia, Austria, and
last year the Ensemble implemented successful tour in Japan.

Children and juveniles coming from Prešov and
its surrounding in total number of approximately 35 members
of the vocalizing, dancing, and musical groups attend the
Ensemble. The Ensemble popularises and propagates folk songs
and dances from the Šariš region and of the Rusyn minority
of the northeast part of Slovakia. From May 16 up to June
6, 2006 the SLAVJANE Ensemble shall celebrate the 30th
anniversary of its establishment and at the same time the
50th Pittsburgh Folklore Festival shall be held, and the
ŠARIŠ Ensemble shall take part at both events for the
invitation received from the Carpath-Rusyn Society
Karpatskorusínska spoločnosť) in the USA with its centre in
Pittsburgh. Apart from the abovementioned events, the
Ensemble shall perform 8 times in the towns in the
surrounding of Pittsburgh.

Jozef Piroh, The Ensemble leader

The members of the ensembles SLAVJANE from USA and SARIS
from Slovakia appeared in the common performance in the
final scene of the cultural program at the end of the first
day of the 8th World Congress of Rusyns on 24th
June 2005 in Polish Krynica

Photo: A. Z.

CD
and MC released with the sponsorship of S. Chepa

2005

In May 2005, a new CD
entitled “A TALL HAZEL“, containing 26 Rusyn folk songs
interpreted by the Saris Milk Agro children´s folk singing group under
the leadership of Jozef Piroh and accompanied by the T. Lakatos and O.
Kandrac folk group.

The musical director,
responsible for the repertoire and interepretation, was Milan Garbera.
A booklet in three languages with tablature came with the CD. Steven
W. Chepa – the President of Norstone Financial Corporation, Toronto,
Canada – provided USD 2 000 in sponsorship to cover its release.

The CD is
priced at USD 12 including postage

(or USD
8 without postage)

2004

Try zvizdy tr´och
generacij (Three stars, three generations) – a CD with a concert of
Maria Macoskova, Anna Servicka, Andrea Sikoryakova and their guests,
which was a part of the 7th World Congress of Rusyns in Presov was
released. The release was sponsored by Steven Chepa, who contributed USD
5 000.

The CD is
priced at USD 12 including postage

(or USD
9 without postage)

2003

The concert entitled
“Zaspivajme sobi trjoma holosami“ (Let´s sing together in trio),
which took place within the 7th World Congress of Rusyns at the
Dukhnovich Theatre, was recorded and a CD and a MC with some well-known
Rusyn songs interpreted by Maria Macoskova, Anna Servicka and Andrea
Sikoryakova on them were released. The release was sponsored by Steven
Chepa, who contributed USD 5 000.